Recognizing and Engaging Employees For Dummies

Chapter 19

Top Ten Trends in Employee Recognition

In This Chapter

Decentralizing formal recognition

Customizing and personalizing your rewards

Doing good in the community through recognition

Here’s a quick history of the incentive industry in just a single story: I had a great employee named Nick who told me that, when his grandfather retired after working for 40 years, his company threw him a retirement party and presented him with a plaque for his years of service. He was so moved, he cried. Nick’s father worked his entire career for a defense contractor, and on his 35th anniversary with the firm, he found a coffee mug plopped on his desk, with no one around at the time and no context for the achievement presented. He went into a serious funk for a number of days, pondering, “Is this what my life has amounted to?” Nick graduated from college while he was working for me, and as his graduation date drew near, he called me and said, “Bob, I decided that you should give me a trip to Italy as a graduation gift.” Because he was my best employee ever, my reply was simply, “Done.” Nick used my frequent flier miles and booked the trip he had earned. He had a great time, and I felt great ...